January 19th, 2024How a teenager became THE n°1 French Youtuber, SQUEEZIE.
Lucas began to post videos on youtube in 2008, aged 12 at the time. Passionate about gaming, he created more and more videos under the pseudo Squeezie, and got 1 million subscribers at the age of 17. After high school, he began to do it full time, gaining notoriety and subscribers as he increased the quality, the diversity and the creativity of his videos, soon creating his own games and his own events. Although French speaking, aiming an audience of young people, he has got over 18 M in 2024, compared to 67 M people in France ! This documentary shows the ascension of a prodigy, as well as a fundamental cultural phenomenon.
Far from being a boring documentary, Merci internet is fascinating.
First, it is directed by Squeezie's regular filmmaker and friend. It's lovingly made and shows an endearing personality, a young man who has kept a cool head (most of the time), but above all his integrity when it comes to money. Empathetic and loyal, Squeezie has not only surrounded himself with a loyal team, but also sought direct feedback from his community. Constantly challenging himself, non-stop creative, he staged increasingly crazy and gigantic events, winning over the enthusiasm of his fans. He is now co-owner of an e-sport team (Valorant), called "Gentle Mates".
It's a good reminder of the conditions for success: hard, colossal work, the ability to surround yourself with people, listening to your community, and the constant search for new ideas. But beyond that, the documentary shows just how much Youtube has changed and awakened the cultural landscape. First ignored, then scorned by the traditional media, youtubers have demonstrated the urgent need to learn to communicate differently : by staying in direct contact with the public, by constantly reinventing themselves - in short, by restoring the credentials of the word "creativity".
